Old Russian nuclear deterrent satellite falls out of orbit and burns up in the atmosphere

The Russian military satellite Cosmos-2222 has been de-orbited. It was part of the Oko nuclear deterrent system.

Here's What We Know

The spacecraft ceased to exist on May 3, 2023. The 1.9-tonne satellite failed to reach the Earth's surface. It went out of orbit and burned up in the atmosphere. This was reported by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

"Cosmos-2222" was an early warning satellite for intercontinental ballistic missiles launched from US territory. It was sent into orbit in late November 1992. The satellite received a set of infrared sensors and optical telescopes to identify missiles.

For almost 30 years Cosmos-2222 was space junk. In 1995 its mission came to an end. Today, it re-entered the atmosphere of our planet, after which it successfully burned up.

Note that at least three Cosmos satellites have ceased to exist in the last year. Cosmos-2499, in particular, disintegrated into dozens of pieces in early 2023. But at least it lasted almost 10 years.

In December 2022, Cosmos-2560 went out of orbit and burned up in the atmosphere. This happened less than two months after its deployment. Cosmos-2555 claims to be the record-breaker. It was launched on 29 April 2022 and burned up after about three weeks.